Fairy Tale Jutsu
by Magnusrae
Summary: A seemingly mundane assignment sucks Sakura into a world of illusion, danger, and... flying winged Kabutos? Sakuracentric fluff. AU.
1. A Simple Mission

**Fairy Tale Jutsu**

**A/N:** Did we all read the summary? Goood. That means you should all know what to expect. Here's what NOT to expect: something serious or even remotely connected to the actual canon. This is a short, fluff story; written and posted for the heck of it. You've all been warned.

**Disclaimer: **Naruto, its characters and properties belong to Masashi Kishimoto and most certainly not to me. This fact remains true for this chapter and every single consecutive chapter that follows.

**Chapter one: A Simple Mission**

Sakura Haruno's sandaled feet plodded methodically down the dirt path. Tree hopping probably would have been quicker, but the strawberry-haired girl saw no need to hurry. Her assignment was a class 'D' ranked mission and didn't even involve leaving the relative safety of the massive protective forest that surrounded the Hidden Leaf Village. She sighed and tucked an errant strand of straight pink hair behind an ear. The heavy exiting of breath attracted the attention of her only traveling companion.

The small dog trotting next to her rolled his large eyes skyward. "What's wrong little girl? Depressed because the store was out of your favorite shampoo?"

Sakura came to an abrupt stop, clenching one fist in the air before her. "I changed my shampoo on purpose and all because of you! What kind of ninja dog uses shampoo anyways?!" she yelled.

"One who wants a nice shiny coat for the ladies," Pakkun answered mildly. "You're still upset we use the same kind?"

"Oh, forget it," Sakura snapped. "Let's just keep moving." She continued on, her feet striking the path in a forceful manner that was just shy of a stomp.

"You smelled much better before," Pakkun muttered, but Sakura ignored him. Her foul mood was caused by matters other than the fact that Master Kakashi's smallest ninja dog liked the same brand of shampoo that she did.

Sakura was a _genin_, a rookie ninja, and as such was part of a three man team: Cell Seven. Except that today she was alone; the simple retrieve-scroll-and-return-to-village mission was apparently too mundane for her two "mighty" chunin teammates. It was bad enough that she was the only member of her cell not to pass the Chunin Exams, but did they have to rub it in by making her take a 'D' ranked mission alone?

The teen felt another sigh building up; she stifled it with a downwards glance at the dog. Master Kakashi had summoned him for her when she had vocalized rather loudly her anger about being separated from the boys. His nose buried deep in the latest volume of his favorite dirty book, the silver-haired jouninhad simply stated that her teammates had both had something come up at the last minute and couldn't go with her. As usual he had been seemingly oblivious to her actual concerns. It wasn't that Sakura didn't think that she couldn't handle the mission alone; it was that she felt she was being left behind.

She fixed her teal-green eyes forward. And if she was to be honest with herself; she was. She had graduated top of her class from the local ninja academy; she was smart and her chakra control was second to none, and for a while it had been enough to allow her to delude herself into believing she was the equal to the boys. But she wasn't.

_Naruto may be an annoying, overly-energetic goofball, and his chakra control is lousy, but he has so much of it that it doesn't matter. And Sasuke…_

Sakura felt her lips twitch up at the thought of her raven-haired crush. Then they turned down again. Sasuke had been born with a _kekkei genkai_, an inherited blood trait, which granted him the ability to use the sharingon eyes. He could see through any ninjutsu and then copy it perfectly. So even if Sakura mastered a move first, all he had to do was copy her to get it right. Sakura shook her head; it had been a _long_ time since she had mastered anything first.

Another sigh. It wasn't as if she had grand designs on being Hokage or something like that; she simply wanted to be equal to the others. So that Sasuke, and yes, even Naruto, would be proud to have her as a teammate. So that she wasn't the one that got left behind or who needed to be protected. Was that too much to ask?

"Probably," she muttered to herself. After all, as Shikamaru put it, she was a kunoichi with no particular talent. Even Ino, her sometimes best friend and full time rival, had a specific jutsu that was hers alone. Master Kakashi had said that her talents would emerge, given time, but Sakura was tired of waiting. She wanted her own jutsu; now, damn it.

"Hey kid, are you going to have puppies?"

The question was so unexpected that Sakura stopped dead in her tracks. "What did you say?" she asked, her voice rising an octave on each word.

"The last time I heard so much heavy sighing, it was my sister going into labor." Pakkun stated flatly while scratching himself behind an ear. He took a sly, sideways glance at the young kunoichi and then flinched as, just for a moment, he saw her inner warrior overshadowing her normal personality. Then the moment passed and Sakura was herself again.

"Yeah, you're right. I've been acting like a child, haven't I?" The young teen crouched and sprang onto a strong nearby tree branch. "Come on, Pakkun," she called while leaping athletically to another branch. "It's quicker this way."

The dog shook his head. "Like _I've_ been the one holding us back."

"_What_ was that?"

"Nothing."

Leaping speedily from tree to tree was a standard shinobiway to travel, especially if one grew up in the Village Hidden in the Leaves. Sakura enjoyed the physical exertion; her brain was kept busy with things like speed, balance, judging distance and the all-important chakra control so it wasn't dwelling on other, darker things. The hermit woman she had been instructed to find lived off the main trail so she relied on Pakkun's keen sense of smell to locate the secluded cabin.

Like she had been trained, Sakura spent a few moments concealed within the canopy, observing her target location for potential booby traps or other dangers. None were immediately obvious and Pakkun stated that he could only detect the scent of one human.

"A really old one," he said while managing to crinkle his nose. "She smells like warm cheese."

Sakura made a face, scanning the clearing once more. Besides the small house, there was a weedy vegetable garden and a well. The area was unkempt, but not dangerous looking. No tell-tale disturbances of ground cover or foliage, no suspicious glints of light from suspended black wires that would indicate a trap. Sakura sprang from the safety of the treetop to the edge of the clearing.

"Hello?" she called. "My name is Sakura Haruno. I'm from Konohagakure and I'm here to pick up a scroll."

The cabin was a simple affair, made from bamboo with a thatch roof. It looked livable, if not somewhat shabby on the outside. The 'door' was actually just a cloth hung over an opening in the structure and there was no evidence of electricity or running water. Sakura shuddered to think about how many woodland creatures might scurry in and out of the structure during the night. Of course, as a rookie ninja, she had spent her fair share of nights sleeping out in the open with who knows what creeping around, but that was different. Outside was outside and inside was inside. If a mission required camping out or sleeping in a tree, so be it, that was her job. But the idea of living that way full time, without any modern conveniences, didn't appeal to her at all.

"Hello?" she called again, a bit louder.

"I'm coming, I'm coming. No need to shout," a crackly voice emerged from the small home. As the kunoichiwatched, a wrinkled old hand brushed aside the cloth door of the cabin. The other hand wielded a twisted, burl-covered cane. The emerging woman was tiny; her head topped out at the level of Sakura's chest. She was stooped forward, as if the weight of her head was too much for her body to hold anymore. The woman's forward bent position made the young teen straighten her own posture unconsciously. The hermit's hair was the color of old bones, an odd yellowish-grey that was completely off-putting. And her face… well, Sakura felt that using the cliché comparisons to prunes or raisons might be overly insulting to the fruit.

_Moisturize, I must remember to moisturize. _The Leaf Village genin forwarded the elderly woman what she hoped was a reassuring smile. She bowed slightly to the older woman, although, true to her training, she kept her eyes on the person as she did so. "Hello. My name is Sakura and I'm from Konohagakure. I'm looking for Kurei-san. Is that you?"

"Eh?" the woman toddled out a little farther, cupping one gnarled hand to an ear. "Speak up, honey, I'm a little hard of hearing."

Sakura grimaced. She took a deep breath to repeat herself, but before she could begin the elderly woman gestured towards her.

"Eh? Eh? I can't hear you. Why don't you come closer?"

Sakura's breath exited in a whoosh. It was with great effort that she kept her temper under control. She glanced down at Pakkun, who gave a doggy equivalent of a shrug at her. "Fine," the teen muttered, taking a few steps closer to the lady. It was then that she caught a glimpse of the woman's eyes, and what she saw there froze her in place. Behind the swollen bags and sunken-in sockets was a pair of multi-hued red orbs, the most prominent color reminding Sakura of freshly spilt blood. The eyes, though housed in an elderly body, were neither rheumy nor dull with cataracts. Instead the eyes were sharp, calculating, and Sakura felt a chill run through her as they met her own. Something was wrong here, very wrong.

Noticing her hesitance, the old woman gave a toothless grin. "What's the matter, dearie? You aren't afraid of little old me; are you?"

The young kunoichi'sfeet automatically slid into a more balanced stance; one hand hovered above where she kept her kunai knives. Teal-green eyes narrowed as the girl's own little smirk emerged. "Nice try. I was almost fooled. In fact, I'm embarrassed that I didn't notice it before."

The old woman's jack-o-lantern grin widened. "Eh?" she said again.

Sakura noted with satisfaction that the voice was no longer cracked with age, but younger, almost melodical. She was right. "This whole clearing: the cabin, that garden, even you; it's all genjutsu. If you are Kurei-san, stop this now. I am not an enemy. But if you are not…" Sakura's right hand drifted closer to her kunai.

"Heh, heh, heh; not bad, not bad at all. But the question is: what will you do now?" The woman took a step closer.

"That's close enough!" Sakura's right hand blurred into motion; she grabbed and flung three kunai at the woman, aiming at her feet to drive her back. As soon as the daggers were loosed, she clasped her hands together, the first two fingers of each hand pointed upright as her other fingers intertwined. She focused her chakra and forced it out.

_Kai! Release! _The illusion around her wavered and began to fade. The small house, the garden and the well all disappeared to show that she was standing in a normal forest clearing without a hint of civilization around her. The only illusion that remained was the old woman, who Sakura knew was not as old or enfeebled as she looked. The short, granny figure had sprung back to avoid her kunai and had dropped her cane.

"Oh-ho," she cackled. "So you want a fight, do you? Well, I'll be happy to oblige."

Her hands, no longer pretending to be arthritic, flew into forming signs. Sakura's own hands were forming signs, preparing to use a substitution jutsu to remove herself from harm's way. Her sharp eyes and quick mind catalogued the signs her adversary was forming. _Rabbit, rat, dog… it's more_ _genjutsu._ No need for a substitution then. She changed her pattern to form illusory doppelgangers instead.

"Pakkun, get out of here! Go get help!" the newly triplicate Sakuras ordered.

"Hee, hee; too late! Fairy Tale Jutsu!"

The Sakuras once again clasped their hands together in an attempt to break the genjutsu before it could deceive them. But this time it was different. A flood of powerful chakra buffeted her on all sides; her own clones disappearing under the press of foreign chi. The teenager shielded her eyes as the world around her grew dark and began to spin. The surrounding trees, the old woman, even Pakkun swirled around her so fast that she thought she was going to be sick. Unable to break through the genjutsu, Sakura collapsed to her knees, closing her eyes so the dizziness would leave her.

The illusion was strong; even her ears were fooled into believing that a powerful wind was swirling around her. Finally, though, it stopped. Grasping a kunai in one hand and a few shurikans in the other, the pink-haired kunoichi cautiously opened her eyes…


	2. We're Not in Konoha Anymore

**Chapter Two:**

**We're Not in Konoha Anymore**

Sakura blinked. She blinked again. After rubbing her eyes, she finally gave up on trying to adjust them physically. Instead she just stared. Gone were the familiar colors of the forest, the multi-hued greens and browns, the calming hues of the natural earth. Gone was the forest. She seemed to be in a village of sorts. For some reason though, the houses seemed rather two dimensional, with only the bizarre colors making them stand out from the background. The shades before her were as bright as they were false; as if someone had gone crazy with a set of brilliant acrylic paints. The yellows, greens and blues… it hurt her eyes, this world of false color.

Remembering that she had been in the midst of something important, Sakura got to her feet; feeling like her head had been stuffed with peanut butter. She heard a whine and was grateful to see Pakkun stumble towards her, wagging his tail slightly. Before she could check on him though, a familiar voice interrupted her.

"Hey lady, you killed the Wicked Witch of the East! Cool!"

"What? Konahamaru?"

The Hokage's grandson greeted her with a toothy grin. He was flanked by his two omnipresent cohorts; all three of them were sporting Naruto-esque goggles, although the rest of their clothes appeared a bit odd.

"Witch?" Sakura turned to see where the boy was pointing. The false cabin of the clearing was there, although it also had been cast into a too-bright shade of brown. Odder still was that a pair of legs were sticking out from beneath the house.

"Oh no; is that Kurei-san?"

The words escaped her mouth before her brain caught up. No. If it was her adversary from the clearing then this so-called "Fairy Tale Jutsu" would have been undone. Sakura shook her head hard, her short pink tresses whipping against her cheek. She put away her throwing weapons to pinch herself on the arm to help clear the cobwebs from her head. That's right; none of this was real. It was all a type of powerful _genjutsu_, so powerful that it had confused her mind for a moment. She kept her eyes closed, locking the techni-color scenery outside as she rediscovered her center. She ignored Konahamaru's cheerful, "Thanks for killing that old bag; she ruled over us all for, like, centuries."

_None of this is real. It's all genjutsu and I have to break free._

Once again she clasped her hands together, fingers intertwined as the first two fingers on each hand pointed skyward. Sakura didn't have a lot of chakra, but she was good at controlling the amount that she had. She could feel it flowing through her, rising up until her skin tingled with power. Her eyes snapped open; she noted with satisfaction that the dust around her was ascending on invisible currents, swirling around her feet and legs as the power of her chakra disturbed it from the ground.

_Kai! Release!_

She sent her chakra pulsing out; the techni-colored world around her shimmered and wavered under its assault. Konahamaru, still standing there with a too-large grin on his face, shimmered too. He and his friends were as false as the rest of her surroundings. Sakura panted slightly as she maintained her attack, hoping that this illusion would fade as the one in the clearing had done. The teen collapsed to her knees as her chakra ran low. The false scenery around her instantly smoothed itself, as if she hadn't done anything at all. Dizzy from expending so much chakra at once, Sakura fell forward, catching herself with her hands before her body could hit the ground.

A kernel of fear, one she always kept with her, suddenly grew inside her chest. She was trapped and alone. No teammates to help her out, no sensei to say that he would die before allowing his comrades to be killed. No one would come looking for her and she was at the mercy of who knows what kind of enemy. She heard a whine just before a cold nose touched her bare arm. Sakura gathered Pakkun up into her arms, just as a bright glow descended from the sky. The pink-haired kunoichimade it to her feet, still clinging to the surprisingly quiet ninja dog, as the light formed itself into…

"You!" Sakura spat the word. "What is this jutsu? What do you want from us?"

"I am Kurei, Good Witch of the North. Thank you for freeing these little ones from the tyranny of the Wicked Witch of the East."

It was the same old hag from the clearing: same wrinkled skin, same lifeless hair; and those eyes, with their concentric circles of red; those were the same too. The only difference was that she was now clothed in a brilliant white dress. Although only slightly taller than Konahamaru, she still patted the top of his head as she had spoken.

"So you _are_ Kurei? I told you before; I am _not_ your enemy. I'm from Konoha, sent to retrieve a scroll. There's no need for _any_ of this!" Sakura gestured awkwardly with one hand, while still holding Pakkun with the other.

"Humph! And I'm supposed to believe that a no-talent girl like you is one of Konoha's kunoichi? Fat chance!"

The mirage Konahamaru giggled. Before Sakura could protest further, the woman continued. "Listen up, dearie, there's only one way for you to get out of this world. Your chakra isn't powerful enough to break my spell so you'll have to find another way. If you can manage to break free, I'll give you what you seek. Otherwise you can just stay here until you rot." A golden glow began to surround Kurei as she started to ascend into the air. "Oh, by the way, those shoes are yours." She waggled a gnarled hand towards the cabin behind Sakura before disappearing.

"Hey! Come back here, you old nut-bag! You have no right to keep me here! Do you hear me?!" Sakura yelled at the top of her voice, the vehement words dashing the smiles off of Konahamaru and his cronies. But it was to no end; the falsely-colored world remained and Kurei was gone.

Sakura grimaced and looked down at the dog in her arms. "Well this is a fine mess. What do you think we should do?"

Pakkun just whined at her.

"Oh come one! I need help here. Talk to me!"

The dog remained silent; Sakura couldn't believe that she actually craved his normal, baritone voice. "Look, I know that you might think it's smart to hide the fact that you can talk, but I could really use some advice…"

When silence once again met her heartfelt plea, Sakura decided that a change of strategy was in order. She held the small dog before her in both hands, turning him to face her. Taking a deep breath, she spoke in the highest falsetto she could manage. "Oh, look at the cute little puppy. Who's a cute doggy? Is it you? Yes, it is!" she gushed. The first time they had met, Pakkun had warned her to never call him a 'cute little dog'. Sakura figured that if anything would get him to break his silence, baby-talking at him would. Unfortunately, she was wrong. The pug-mix wiggled in her hands, but did nothing more.

"Hey, hey!" Konahamaru shouted, sounding a lot like the ninja he loved to emulate. "Aren't you going to take the shoes? They've got a powerful charm on them, you know. 'Though they're probably too nice for someone like you."

Sakura's inner warrior snarled a little, but she put Pakkun down and turned to see where Konahamaru was pointing. Sure enough, the legs that had been sticking out from beneath the house were gone, leaving a pair of open-toed shoes designed almost exactly like the pair she was wearing, only silver instead of blue. Sakura walked over to them and picked them up gingerly, ignoring the grinning illusory child. They were silver, not red, which probably meant that the 'Fairy Tale Jutsu' was following the book instead of the movie. Fortunately, Sakura had read the book.

With a wicked grin, she changed into the silver shoes. Gathering Master Kakashi's dog back up into her arms, the teen ordered the shoes to take her home. She took three steps… and went nowhere but the three steps. She tried clicking the heels together, but to no avail.

Konahamaru and his friends were watching with superior smirks on their faces. "Hey lady, want to know what you should do? You should go to the Emerald City and see the Great and Powerful Hokage. He can get you home."

If Sakura hadn't already known that the child before her was an illusion, that would have given it away. Konahamaru never spoke that respectfully of his grandfather. Usually he just called him 'the old geezer'. With an unladylike snort, she put Pakkun back down.

"You're not going to sing, are you?"

"What? No way! A super cool ninja like me would never sing! I'm just telling you that the Great and Powerful Hokage can probably get you home. All you have to do is follow this yellow dirt path."

Sakura rolled her eyes skyward before casting them in the indicated direction. Sure enough, there was a conspicuous trail of yellow earth leading out of the village. Her voice dripped with sarcasm. "Yeah, right. I'll just go following an imaginary trail to see an imaginary Hokage. Meanwhile, my real body will go walking off of a very real cliff or something. Thanks, but no thanks."

The boy interlaced his fingers behind his head. He gave a careless shrug. "Suite yourself, but if you think that the Good Witch of the North will run out of chakra if you just wait around; think again. This jutsu takes a lot of chakra to cast, but almost none to maintain. I'm sure that with that super broad-brow of yours, you can figure out what that means."

Sakura's eyes grew wide; there was no suppressing her inner warrior this time. It didn't matter that her antagonist was an illusion; no one made reference to her forehead and got away with it. With a flying leap, the kunoichi easily captured the child, putting him in a headlock. The boy's feet futilely kicked at the air as she held him up off the ground.

"What was that?" she hissed.

"Besides," he gasped, "If you don't leave, you'll never find the others."

Sakura loosened her grip slightly. "What others? Pakkun and I are the only real ones here."

"Ha! That's what you think! But if you really want to know the truth, you'll have to follow the path and find them."

The spiky-haired child gave a sudden squirm and freed himself. He scrambled a safe distance away before turning to point at her with an extended index finger. His two silent companions flanked him. "A-ha! I, Konahamaru, will be the greatest Hokage _ever_! A fire-breathing, broad-browed, old hag like you will never be able to stop the likes of me!"

Before Sakura could react, he threw a smoke bomb down, temporarily hiding his group behind a hazy wall of dense grey smoke. When it cleared, he and his friends were hiding underneath a blanket that was probably supposed to look like a pile of rocks. Except that the 'rocks' kept squirming and the natural tan color didn't blend into the brightly colored surroundings at all. Inflamed over the unnecessary forehead comments, Sakura proceeded to give all three illusion children a thump on the head, causing them to scurry off in great haste.

Then she planted her fists on her hips and scowled at her predicament. Her first instinct had been to stay put and let her captor run out of chakra, rending the jutsu useless. But if what Konahamaru had said was true, Kurei might not be using a lot of chakra to maintain her imaginary world. And what if there _were_ others trapped here; real people like herself who had wandered in by accident? Sakura pursed her lips in thought. She had an underdeveloped talent for _genjutsu_; her sensei had even mentioned it before. So while she had managed to preserve herself and see that the world around her was false, it was entirely possible that others wouldn't be so lucky.

Her teal-colored eyes found Pakkun and she gave the ninja dog a worried look. There was no way to tell if he was actually lost to the spell or just acting. "Well, what do you think we should do?" she asked, not really expecting an answer. To her surprise, the small ninja dog started trotting down the yellow dirt path with a purpose, not even sparing a backwards glance at the girl. Sakura's scowl deepened, but what else could she do? She had to trust Master Kakashi's dog.

"All right, 'Toto'; let's go."

------------------------------------------------

**A/N: **As a further disclaimer, "The Wonderful Wizard of Oz" was written by L. Frank Baum. I own as much of it as I do "Naruto", which is to say that I own nothing at all. This fact remains true for this chapter and every single chapter contained in this story.

As a side note, thanks to those who reviewed to the first chapter. I will use the "review reply" function as soon as it is back online. I thought I should at least let you know that I appreciate your kind words.


	3. Meet the Scarecrow

**Chapter Three:**

**Meet the Scarecrow**

Sakura's progress down the yellow dirt path was slow and cautious. Traveling out in the open was simply _not_ the way of the shinobi, but she had little choice in the matter as the path was meandering through open fields instead of forests.

Her overly cautious forward progress was due more out of concern for what her body might be doing in the real world. Sakura had been in the middle of a small clearing, surrounded by the protective forests that hid her home village of Konoha. The genjutsu she had been caught in was powerful, but the pastoral, albeit falsely colored scenery just wasn't real. She kept reaching out with a hand, half-expecting it to collide with a hidden tree. To her surprise, her exploratory gestures met with no resistance at all.

In truth, she would have felt better to have found a tree or something. This jutsu was strong, influential enough to completely disguise the real world and temporarily cloud even her analytical mind. She didn't quite understand how it worked and while the forests that surrounded her home were safe enough for a wary, trained shinobi to travel through, a jutsu-addled girl stumbling around blindly was bound to end up dead.

For the umpteenth time since beginning her journey, Sakura's silver-shod feet came to a complete stop. Her traveling companion, the ninja dog Pakkun, turned from his lead position to give an impatient sounding bark. Sakura gave a nervous giggle.

"Easy for you to say," she muttered, more to herself than to the dog. "Aren't you even a little concerned about playing along with Kurei's sick little game? I, for one, don't want to end up some giant bug's lunch."

The dog barked again, causing the pink-haired girl even more concern. Normally she would trust her sensei's favorite dog with her life, but she wasn't sure if his silence was due to the fact that he was hiding his intelligence as a good ninja ploy, or if it was because his mind had been affected by the powerful genjutsu. If the latter was true, could she really trust his judgment? With a couple of more impatient barks, Pakkun continued to trot down the path, clearly expecting her to follow. With a sigh, the girl once again trailed after him.

_I suppose that if Kurei really wanted me dead, she'd have filled my body full of kunai by now, _Sakura mused. _Of course, she didn't seem all that sane. Maybe she gets her kicks watching people jump through her hoops; wandering around blindly until they accidentally kill themselves._

The thought gave Sakura a chill that ran through her entire body, making the hairs on her arms and on the back of her neck stand up on end. She was a geninand she prided herself on being on the path of a true shinobi, but the idea of dying in the line of duty frightened her. To make matters even more ridiculous, this was supposed to be a simple 'D'-ranked mission. Her only task had been to fetch a scroll from the hermit woman Kurei and return it to the village; a mission so simple that her two chunin teammates had found better things to do with their time than to accompany her.

_This is all Master Kakashi's fault. Stupid Sensei! It would serve them all right if I died out here!_

So engrossed was Sakura with her thoughts that she had forgotten to be cautious about the trail and her surroundings. When a bloodcurdling scream unexpectedly erupted from a field off to the side of the path her heart lodged firmly in her throat for a second or two, her body giving an involuntary jerk of complete startlement before her kunoichiinstincts kicked in. Rolling to dodge any on-coming attacks, she came to her feet with both hands bristling with weapons; kunai in her right, shuriken in her left, with her arms crossed in front of her chest in preparation to launch them all at once.

"Ha, ha! I scared you good!"

The familiar sounding voice almost caused Sakura to drop her weapons out of relief. She straightened, staring at the boy affixed to a tall pole in the field across the way. Bright sunshine hair spiked upwards at jaunty angles, clear blue eyes gleamed at her over a face dominated by a too-wide grin. The orange jumpsuit that was almost garish in the actual world stood out as a relief of real color in this pastel-hued one. Her heart may have been won over long ago by a certain dark and moody Uchiha, but in this moment, seeing her cheerful, indomitable teammate made it swell with insuppressible joy.

"Naruto!"

The joy was short-lived. The tied-up boy cocked his head to one side in a puzzled gesture. "Huh? Oh, hi, Sakura. What are you doing here?"

The pink-haired kunoichi's feet had been carrying her in almost a run towards her teammate; now they slowed to a stop before the boy. She sighed as she looked up at him, realizing that this person was probably as false as Konahamaru had been. Her heart suddenly felt heavy; she dreaded the truth, but she had to know. Summoning chakra to her hands, Sakura touched his leg. The illusion rippled all around them, but to her surprise, Naruto remained solid.

She stared up at him in awe. "You're real. Naruto, what are you doing here? How did you get trapped by this genjutsu?"

"Huh?" The blond boy's face scrunched up in thought, as if there was a direct connection between the functions of his brain and the movements of his face. He cocked his head to one side. "Huh? Genjutsu? Trapped? I don't know what you're talking about. I'm a scare-ninja and I'm going to be the best scare-ninja in all the land!"

The last was spoken with such pride that Sakura had to giggle. Her built-up stress caused the giggle to turn into a genuine, desperate laugh. She ended up holding her sides, she was laughing so hard. She couldn't help it. She was scared deep down; this mission had been going from bad to worse, and this 'Fairy Tale Jutsu' was so strong that it had apparently completely befuddled Naruto's mind. But still… it was _Naruto_; and besides her immediate relief at no longer being alone in this strange world, she had to admit that he was absolutely perfect for the role he was playing.

"Hey, hey, Sakura! What's so funny?" Naruto demanded, scowling from the top of the pole. "I will _so_ be the best scare-ninja and then everyone will have to respect me. Me: Naruto, the greatest scare-ninja."

Sakura looked up at him, the familiar words bringing a natural smile to her face. She wiped tears brought forth by her hysterical laughter away.

"Hokage."

"Huh?"

"It's supposed to be Hokage. You want to be the greatest Hokage ever."

The tow-headed ninja still looked confused. Sakura shook her head, her mind starting to function as it should again. Obviously Naruto's brain had been ensnared by the genjutsu. He was playing the role of the scarecrow, which meant that he was supposed to accompany her to the Emerald City. Of course, regardless of what role he was playing, Sakura had no intention of leaving him here.

She circled the tree trunk sized pole he was tied too; relieved to find that he was bound there simply with rope encircling his mid-section, much the way Master Kakashi had tied him up during the very first test he had given them as a team. The thought of the silver-haired jounin brought another smile to her face. Kakashi's very name meant 'scarecrow', but the genin couldn't imagine her sensei trussed up to a pole. She still couldn't figure out how Naruto had ended up here.

Sakura freed him with ease; Naruto fell to the ground with an audible 'oooff'. Rubbing his backside, the blond teen sprang to his feet, animatedly whirling to glare at her. "Hey! What did you do that for? How can I be the greatest scare-ninja if I'm not on top of my pole scaring people?"

Teal eyes blinked in surprise at the genuine anger being displayed in the blue ones. "Naruto…" she began, watching as he crossed his orange-clad arms in front of his chest. "Naruto, try to understand. None of this is real. It's genjutsu. We're both trapped and the only way of getting out of here is to play through the story."

Silence. Her teammate was completely unappeased. Sakura sighed and decided to try a different tact. "Naruto, I'm going to the Emerald City to see the Hokage. He's supposed to help get me home. You should come with me. He can, um, tell you how to, um…" _get a clue! _her inner warrior inserted. "…Um, he can tell you how to be an even greater scare-ninja than you already are. And I'm sure you can find way more people to scare on the way there than you would just waiting on the top of that pole… right?"

Naruto's head was cocked to one side. He was nodding slowly at her, but Sakura knew him well enough to know that question marks were probably dancing around his head.

"So you'll go with me?"

"Yeah, well, I don't really understand what's going on, but you're probably right. I'll go see this Hokage person and maybe he'll help me too."

Sakura beamed at him so brightly that a deep red blush discolored the chunin's cheeks. They made their way back to the yellow dirt path, Sakura gently trying to question him on how he had ended up tied to the pole. Unfortunately, while he inexplicably remembered her and Pakkun, the rest of his memories seemed to start and end with the pole. In his mind, he had always been tied there. Sakura could feel her frustration mounting at his inability to grasp the concept of this world being an illusion. Finally she bonked him on the top of his head, hard enough to raise a bump and bring tears to his eyes.

"Hey!" the blond gasped. "What did you do that for?"

"You," Sakura fumed, "are being even more dense than usual. I've explained it five times already and you're still so clueless. You don't have to play your part that well!"

"I don't know what you're talking about! I'm not playing a part!"

Mentally, the kunoichi concluded that that was indeed the sad truth.


	4. And the Tin Man

**Chapter Four:**

**And the Tin Man**

After another four or five times, Sakura stopped trying to explain the situation to Naruto. It was frustrating to say the least, but she figured that something about the genjutsu was preventing him from actually processing her words. In his mind they were going to the Emerald City to see the Hokage and that was that. Still, Sakura was glad for the company. It took twice as long as usual for the overly energetic ninja's nature to get on her nerves and even then she continued walking along with a smile on her face. With Naruto traveling with her, there was no more hesitance to her steps and they made good time down the yellow dirt path.

A forest was their apparent destination. Of course, being familiar with the story meant that Sakura knew what to expect. The only surprise was in how quickly they transitioned from fields to forest. One moment it was off in the painted distance, the next they were standing at its entrance. Both shinobi paused to stare into the murky depths of the great forest. It reminded Sakura uncomfortably of the Forest of Death, the location of the second part of the chunin exam.

"Hey, Sakura?"

She turned to look at her blond teammate. There had been an undercurrent of uncertainty to his tone, and uncertainty was not a part of his usual repertoire of emotions.

"What is this place? Why is it so dark?"

The pink-haired girl almost fell over sideways. "What do you mean "what is this place?" It's a forest. You grew up in a village surrounded by one for pity's sake!"

"Oh." Naruto contemplated the forest again, his hands clasped behind his head. "Hmmm… nope. Not ringing any bells."

_I'll ring your bell, you dolt! _inner Sakura raged. The kunoichi rolled her eyes skyward before rolling them back down to Pakkun. The small dog had been scratching behind one ear; upon sensing her gaze he got back up and started off into the forest. Sakura snagged one of Naruto's orange sleeves and followed after him.

She guessed that the forest was supposed to be dark and creepy, but once they got into it, it wasn't so bad. In fact, the more subdued colors were a relief to the eyes after the bright hues of the other area. At first she was tempted to tree-hop, but then she decided against it. Tree hopping would require them to burn chakra and Sakura wanted hers so she could make other attempts at breaking the genjutsu. Besides that; while the trees closest to them seemed real enough, those further away looked more like cardboard cut outs. Sakura decided that sticking to the path was the best course of action.

As it was, they made quick enough progress down the trail, so quick that Sakura would have missed it if Pakkun hadn't been with them. The ninja dog stopped at the entrance to a side path, barking to grab her attention.

"Oh right. The tin woodsman," Sakura muttered to herself, before leading Naruto down the faint path after Pakkun. Sure enough, they came to a clearing. Trees were felled this way and that; their mighty trunks splintered into pieces. It was obvious that an axe hadn't been used; it looked as though they had been physically beaten down, tossed this way and that by a fierce force. And in the center of the destruction was…

"Sasuke!" Sakura's teal-colored eyes widened as she observed the familiar continence of her raven-haired crush from between a gap in two laterally positioned trees. Her heart leapt for joy, doing the odd double-beat that it often did when Sasuke was near. Now she _knew_ everything would be fine. This was Sasuke Uchiha, her _competent_ teammate: top graduate of their class, wielder of the sharingon eyes… and complete and total hunk. She scrambled to clear the felled trees, scraping a knee in her haste, a girly giggle escaping her throat.

Sasuke would know what to do. He was so talented, so driven, so… so…

Sakura's forward momentum came to an abrupt stop as she finally entered the space where Sasuke was. Her vision no longer obscured by the branches and leaves of sideways trees, Sakura could only stand and stare. Behind her she could hear Naruto erupt in gut-bursting laughter. Naruto never did anything half-way, including laugh. Taking only the briefest of moments to scold him into submission, Sakura again turned back to Sasuke, whose body was entangled in a position that looked neither comfortable nor sustainable.

His legs were crossed into what appeared to be the lotus position, folded in a way so that the tops of his feet were resting on his thighs with their soles pointing towards his stomach. That, of and in itself, wasn't so unusual. What was odd, and painful looking, was the fact that Sasuke had somehow managed to stick his arms straight down through the two tight spaces between his bent legs and his opposite feet. His entire body was suspended off the ground, supported by his two arms.

"Hello Sakura, Naruto," he said casually, as if it was perfectly natural to be twisted up like pretzel.

"Um… Sasuke? What are you doing? Are you okay?"

"You look like a big chicken!"

Naruto's loud declaration reverberated through the forest. Sakura shot him her fiercest glare, which managed to quiet him down. The ear to ear grin, however, refused to go away. She decided to ignore the blond, turning her attention to her other teammate. Surprisingly enough, Sasuke didn't seem annoyed by Naruto's assertion.

"It's called the 'rooster' position. I'm practicing yoga."

"Uh-huh." The description of the position seemed accurate enough. Sasuke's arms looked like poultry legs as they descended from the tangle of his legs and supported the weight of his body. "Um… why are you…?"

The somber boy cut off Sakura's speculation. "Because Master Kakashi won't teach me how to open the inner gates, like Lee can. Yoga is supposed to bring the body into closer connection with the mind, allowing for a better flow and control of chakra. If I can master this…"

Tired of looking down at her crush, Sakura dropped to her knees before him, so that their eyes were on the same level. "Sasuke… Master Kakashi knows best. Opening the gates is dangerous; look at what happened to Lee. I know you think you need to be stronger, but you don't need to do things like this. You have the sharingon…"

Sakura stopped and she shook her head. Of course. Sasuke had the sharingon eyes, a _kekkei genkai_ that allowed him to see through any ninjutsu or genjutsu. There was no way this was the real Sasuke Uchiha because no genjutsu would be able to fool his eyes. Smiling sadly as her heart crept its way into her stomach, the kunoichi summoned her chakra. Briefly, she made the appropriate hand sign, before touching the yoga-bound chunin on his shoulder. To her amazement though, he remained as solid as Naruto had. Sakura blinked back tears of relief as his dark eyes watched her uncertainly.

"Look, Sasuke; all of this is genjutsu. Use your sharingon. Then you'll be able to see through it!"

Sasuke stared at her for a moment before his eyes found the still standing member of Team Seven.

The blond shrugged, making it a full body motion. "I don't know. She's been babbling on about it non-stop for a while now."

"Oh, shut up, Naruto! Just because you don't get it doesn't mean Sasuke won't!"

Obsidian eyes met teal ones; Sakura felt her innards melt.

"No."

"What? Why not? If you use your sharingon…"

"No. I rely too much on it. This exercise is about strengthening the connection between my mind and body, so I can be stronger. Using the sharingon would defeat the purpose."

Delicate pink brows furrowed down. She just didn't understand. Glancing at the ninja behind her, Sakura found even less understanding.

"Oh well. I guess Sakura and I will just have to go see the Hokage by ourselves," Naruto smirked. "Have fun doing the chicken or whatever."

The boy sprang lightly to the top of a pile of 'chopped' wood, turning to look expectantly at Sakura. Reluctantly, the kunoichi rose to her feet, her heart and confidence flagging. She had believed that Sasuke at least would be reasonable. What was she supposed to do?

"You won't use your sharingon at all? Please, Sasuke? For me?" Even to her own ears, the plea sounded pathetic.

"No. How many times do I have to tell you? I am an avenger. The only thing that matters to me is avenging my clan. I can't allow anything, or anyone, to get in the way of that. I don't have time for you two. Now go away."

Sakura felt as if she had been punched in the gut. The cold, flat tone, the easy way he dismissed her; it was the same way he often turned down her offers for a date. Only it seemed he was being even more distant and cold than usual. Kunoichi weren't supposed to show emotions and that was good, because she felt like crying. Why did Sasuke have to be so… "Heartless". The word escaped her lips at the same time it entered her brain. A smile overcame the pout on her face, although it didn't come close to touching her heart.

Of course. Heartless: without a heart. She had forgotten the roles her teammates were playing. And, upon laying eyes on the dark-haired heart-throb of the rookie class, she had forgotten her own resolve and had fallen back on her old ways. If she wanted to truly be an equal to the boys then she couldn't just expect them to rescue her every time things got tough. No. This time it was her teammates who needed rescuing. Both of them had been completely overcome by the genjutsu. Naruto wasn't usually this clueless and Sasuke wasn't usually this cold. She was the only one who knew what was going on and that meant that it was up to her to get the boys to the end of the story.

Luckily, she knew Sasuke too well. Sakura clasped her hands together at the small of her back, bestowing what she hoped was a warm smile on her twisted-up partner. "You know, Naruto and I are going to see the Great and Powerful Hokage." The words managed to come out without the sarcasm that threatened to accompany them. Sasuke's obsidian eyes locked on to hers. She had his attention; so far, so good.

"He is supposed to be the greatest shinobi in all the land. If anyone can help you get stronger, I'm sure the Hokage can. Why not come with us?"

Dark eyes closed as the ninja considered her words. Sakura waited patiently. Unfortunately, her other partner didn't have nearly as much forbearance. Springing from his tree trunk perch to land next to her, Naruto smirked down at the Uchiha.

"Aw, forget it, Sakura. Who needs him anyways? Besides, I bet he's stuck in that stupid position."

Dark eyes flew open to level a glare at the uncaring blond; simultaneously, delicate pink brows arched skyward. It _was _a part of the story. "Sasuke?" she queried softly. A slow blush that crept along his handsome cheekbones was her only answer. Sakura was able to suppress her laughter; Naruto wasn't nearly as polite about it. After he finally subsided, they both managed to unfold Sasuke's twisted up legs. It was slow going as Pakkun led them back to the main trail, but no one seemed to mind. The mindless, familiar bickering of her teammates was a comfort to her. Team Seven was together again, and Sakura was confident that they would overcome all obstacles in their way.

Once back on the yellow dirt path, Brainless, Heartless, and Sakura continued towards the Emerald City.


	5. Courage? What a Drag!

**Chapter Five**

**Courage? What a Drag!**

Sakura blinked in surprise. The woods around them had gotten darker and creepier. When had that happened? Her attention had been focused on trying to explain the true situation to Sasuke, an exercise in frustration that had gained her nothing. Much like Naruto, the Uchiha remembered and recognized his teammates, but couldn't explain how he had gotten to the center of the clearing. When queried about how long he had been stuck there, silence was her only answer. He also continued to refuse to use the sharingon. In the end, Sakura had dropped the subject, not wanting to further distance Sasuke.

Unfortunately, since she was the only one who was aware of the genjutsu, she was also the only one paying attention to their surroundings, a duty she had been rather lax on since the handsome, raven-haired object of her affection had joined the group. Her teal eyes narrowed as she rectified the situation. It was quiet in this section of the forest; no sounds of birds or beasts, only the forlorn rustling of the tree's leaves. Their own sandaled feet made no noise as they traveled down the yellow dirt path. The canopy was thick here too; hiding away the cheerful sun and its brightness behind a dense lattice work of leaves and branches. It was almost intimidating.

Still, Sakura wasn't a simple farm girl from Kansas; she was a trained shinobi. And their guide, Pakkun, wasn't a yippy little terrier prone to getting into trouble; he too was trained in the ways of the ninja. Although he had yet to talk, Sakura still trusted the instincts of her sensei's favorite dog. Thus far he had given no indication of danger about them, and unlike her, he _hadn't_ been distracted by the newest member of the group. His head was up, alertly moving from side to side as he tested the air on both sides of the path. His ears, despite being folded over, also twitched this way and that. The breeze that whispered and rustled its way through the canopy also found its way down to earth, flippantly playing with the small cape that the dog wore. A larger dog probably would have looked heroic: leading the way alertly while a cape flew from around his neck. On the short pug-mix, though, the effect just made him look cute; an observation that Sakura wisely kept to herself.

Naruto's blond head whipped from side to side as he glared into the depths of the murky forest. "Hey! It sure is quiet here!" he stated loudly. "What kind of animals do you think live in a place like this?"

"Oh, you know, probably blood leaches, and giant centipedes, and snakes." Sasuke answered with a smirk. "You aren't scared, are you?"

"Who? Me? No way! My name is Naruto Uzamaki and I'm going to be the greatest scare-ninja ever!"

Sakura leveled a glare at him. "Then how about keeping it down and acting a little more stealthy, Mr. Scare-ninja."

"Humph," the blond pouted. "Sasuke started it."

The sound of a snapping branch off in the woods silenced them all. They froze in position, listening. Only Pakkun paid it no mind, pausing in his forward motion to give the group of youngsters a look that expressed volumes. Then he continued on. Sakura breathed out and shook her head. She couldn't help but feel a rush of anger, directed mainly at the blond. Sasuke was simply too cute to be mad at for long. Still, she felt like bonking them both. She had enough problems without them bickering like children.

Glancing sideways as them followed after Pakkun, the kunoichi noticed that Naruto's hand hovered over his shuriken holster. Remembering a time when he had almost decapitated a bunny in his eagerness to prove himself, the strawberry-haired girl sought to calm him down before the hyperactive ninja could repeat the episode.

"Naruto, Sasuke was just kidding… Right, Sasuke? There are probably just a few rabbits and squirrels living in these woods."

_And one lion, I mustn't forget that. _Sakura was paying close attention to her surroundings now; this was where the fourth member of the group was supposed to show up by jumping out and threatening the dog. As they kept walking, the anticipation was killing her. It had to happen soon.

_Any minute now… Any minute now…_

Nothing happened. Sakura was beginning to think that the story was going to continue without a lion at all when Pakkun came to a sudden stop. He started sniffing the air on the side of the path and then bolted into a bush. Before Team Seven could react, a loud yell echoed out.

"Ow! Ow! Get this mutt off of me," a familiar voice yelled as another boy came crashing out of the bushes and onto the path. Shaggy black hair bound back in a short pony-tail, small silver hoop earrings adorning each ear, and Pakkun dangling from one hand: Shikamaru looked none the worse for wear as he eyed the group on the path.

"Oh, it's you guys. What a drag."

"Shikamaru!" Sakura snapped an accusatory finger out at him. "You were just going to let us walk by without saying a word; weren't you?"

The pony-tailed chunin of Cell Ten grimaced as he pulled on Pakkun's cheek, trying to get him to let go. "Well, yeah. I was all settled in and comfortable. Why would I want to change that?" The pug-mix finally let go; Shikamaru sighed as he regarded the slobber on his hand. "Man, what a pain."

Sakura's pink eyebrows furrowed down. The lion of the story was supposed to be cowardly; something that she knew Shikamaru was not. Instead, he was about the laziest person in their graduating class. Lazy… cowardly; eh, it was close enough. She was actually kind of glad to see him. Like her, the dark-haired member of Ino's team could break genjutsu. Maybe together they could end this farce. That is, if she could manage to motivate him to help her.

Sakura opened her mouth to speak, pausing when she noticed Shikamaru staring at something behind her. Turning her head, she too stared.

"Sasuke, man, what are you doing?" the newcomer asked.

"It's called 'Downward Facing Dog."

Sasuke's sandaled feet were pressed firmly against the path. His hands were the same. Bent at an angle slightly more acute than ninety degrees at the waist, he looked like an inverted letter 'v'. Sakura felt her mouth go a little slack. The highest point on his body was now his posterior, and the way he was bent over had drawn his normally loose shorts tight against the perfect curves of his ass.

"Uh, Sakura? You have a little bit of drool…" Naruto pointed at her face.

The kunoichi blushed as pink as her tresses, quickly averting her eyes from the Konoha heartthrob as she wiped her mouth. Shikamaru, an outsider to Cell Seven, was eyeing them all as if they had gone insane. Sakura gave him the edited version of what had happened up to this point: her encounter with Kurei, the Fairy Tale Jutsu, and the story that they were all trapped in, including the roles Naruto and Sasuke were playing. She hoped that he at least wouldn't give her the same blank look that her teammates had when she had tried to explain it to them. The look he gave her was bored instead of blank, with his eyes half-shut by the time she had reached the end of her narrative.

He gave a jaw-cracking yawn and a stretch before asking her, "What story are we trapped in again?"

"The Wonderful Wizard of Oz. It's a children's book; spawned a popular movie… come on, Shikamaru, everyone knows it."

"I don't read books; it's too much of a bother. All those pages and words…" the boy's voice trailed off. "And television, what a drag. It's a big waste of time. I'd rather watch the clouds drift by… or the leaves dance in the wind…" His voice trailed off again and he stared upward at the interlaced network of branches and leaves that sheltered the path from the sun's light.

Sakura waited, her impatience mounting as he stared off into space for a long couple of moments. "All right, fine," she said abruptly, dragging his attention back to earth. "You may not know what this story is about, but you are aware that it is genjutsu; right? Don't bother to deny it because I know you can break genjutsu just as well as I can."

The pony-tailed ninja stuck a pinky finger in his ear, tweaking it back and forth. "Gee, you're loud," he muttered. Before Inner Sakura could react to the infuriatingly dead pan tone, he continued on. "Asuma promised he would play ten games of my choosing with me if I went into the woods and waited. When the genjutsu activated, I didn't see any point in trying to break it, so I laid back and watched the leaves dance. It was nice and peaceful until you guys showed up. Now you're telling me I'm supposed to go off on some quest with you? What a pain. Thanks, but no thanks. The genjutsu will go away by itself when the caster runs out of chakra. Why exert myself unnecessarily? You guys can jump through your sensei's hoops if you want to; Asuma should know better by now."

"Our sensei's hoops? What do you mean?"

Shikamaru heaved a sigh that seemed to come from the bottoms of his feet; he gave her a look that suggested that he saw little difference in the intelligence level between her and Naruto. "You mean you haven't figured it out yet? First your sensei sends you on a supposedly simple mission, without your teammates. Then this Kurei, who is hypothetically an ally of Konoha, unreasonably traps you in a jutsu with no other apparent goal than to make you play a role in some sort of fantasy tale. Finally, your missing teammates just so happen to be caught in the same jutsu, as well as me, who was deliberately sent here by Asuma. This is some sort of stupid test; what other conclusion can be drawn?"

Sakura blinked; in all honest, although the circumstances had seemed peculiar, it wasn't something she had considered before. So much for being the analytical one of the group. She gave a partially embarrassed glance towards her teammates. Naruto was standing there with his head cocked to one side, his face scrunched up as he tried to process Shikamaru's words. Sasuke had finished 'Downward Facing Dog'. Apparently caring nothing about the situation, he was now in a different yoga position.

Sakura sighed; _Stupid, stupid master Kakashi!_ Shikamaru's words made sense. Why should she walk around, babysitting her two befuddled comrades? She felt the familiar stirrings of strong disappointment, not only at herself for not recognizing the circumstances for what they were, but also because Shikamaru's calm, logical words had eliminated the significance of the situation. For once, she had seemed to be the important one, but it was all an illusion. A voice disturbed her inner musings.

"Huh? What was that?" she asked.

Ino's pony-tailed teammate sighed. Clearly, repeating himself was on the very long list of things he found tiresome. "Not that I care or anything, but what role are you playing… in this story, I mean."

"Oh, I'm 'Dorothy'. I'm the main character." Sakura's teal-green eyes opened wide. That's right; Dorothy was the main character in 'The Wonderful Wizard of Oz.' The story began and ended with her. The young kunoichi realized why Shikamaru's revelation had disappointed her so; for once, she was the lead character, not a background player. So what if it was only a test? It meant that someone had found her worthy of being tested. Her: not the last of the Uchihas or the chakra-strong prankster of Konoha. For once it was all about her.

The befuddlement of her teammates was testament to that. She couldn't hide behind Sasuke's brilliance or Naruto's seemingly unlimited strength. Even the inclusion of Shikamaru was safe; he was so un-ambitious that he wouldn't purposefully outshine anyone. Sakura suddenly felt like giving him a hug. So this was a test. Well, she was excellent at taking tests _and_ she had the advantage of knowing the material. This was going to be a breeze! All she had to do now was convince Shikamaru to come with them to the Emerald City. The lazy bum seemed dead set against moving from this spot; Sakura wondered how his platinum blond teammate managed to motive him. Of course, Ino was a lot brassier than Sakura could ever be.

"Shikamaru, I've come to a decision. We are going to the Emerald City and _you_ are coming with us."

The slacker smirked a little. "No way. Why should I care about some test that isn't even about me?"

"You are playing the role of the cowardly lion; you _have_ to come."

"Uh, no."

"Yes!"

"Not a chance."

Sakura felt her inner warrior begin to bare her teeth. How did Ino put up with this guy? Her brain started working overtime, dredging up the little bits of information she knew about Shikamaru and reviewing the section of the story that they were trapped in. Her own smirk emerged.

"Sic him, Toto!"

Pakkun needed no further encouragement. He launched himself into the air, biting firmly back down on Shikamaru's hand.

"Ow! Ow! Fine, I'll go with you. Just call off your dog!"

Sakura complied. The Cell Ten ninja shook the dog drool off his hand, a disgusted look on his face. "What a drag. Man, I _hate _pushy women."

A giggle was Sakura's only response.


	6. Revising a Classic

**Chapter Six:**

**Revising a Classic**

There were definite advantages to being a shinobi, Sakura thought to herself as the four ninjas sprang easily across a wide ditch that had caused Dorothy and her lot much consternation. Similarly, the beasts of the forest, known as 'kalidahs' in the book, were no match for their group. Sakura was grateful when they made it across the river without losing Naruto in the process. Yes sir; things seemed to be going very smoothly. The pink-haired kunoichi could feel her confidence rising with every obstacle overcome. She could _do_ this. She would pass the test and prove herself worthy. Of course, she still planned on scolding Master Kakashi for subjecting her to all of this; or at the very least, she would help Naruto out the next time he decided to play a prank on their perpetually late teacher. But for the most part, she was secretly very pleased with herself.

By focusing chakra into their feet, the four shinobi and Pakkun made excellent time through the countryside. Soon the yellow dirt path led them to the edge of a giant swamp, full to the brim with lotus blossoms. Sakura skidded to a stop, and the others followed her lead. For a moment, silence reigned as they all took in the beauty of the natural wonder. Almost as far as the eye could see, the swamp stretched out across the landscape. The lotus blossoms were so prolific that the water of the swamp could not be seen. It looked like a giant floral carpet, but as testament to the presence of water the yellow dirt path became a raised yellow lumber walkway that cut a distinct swath through the multi-hued field of whites, yellows, and pinks. The air smelled vaguely sweet; a memory stirred in Sakura's brain.

"Wow! Look at this place! This is great; I never saw anything like this from atop of my pole! Hee, hee; let's go guys!" the ever-enthusiastic Naruto stated, sprinting directly towards the swamp, apparently not realizing that the flowers were floating on water. Before Sakura could react, the orange-clad ninja was stopped mid-stride; a thin tendril of darkness stretched impossibly from beneath Shikamaru's feet to Naruto's.

"Geez, you're even more stupid than usual. What's up with you?"

"Hey, Shikamaru, that's not fair! Let me go!"

Sakura walked over to the frozen boy. "Naruto, he did it for your own good. That's a swamp. The flowers are floating on water. We have to stick to the path to cross it."

Naruto growled a little. The two unbewitched ninjas exchanged a glance and the unnatural shadow that connected the two boys retreated to back beneath Shikamaru's feet. Able to move freely again, the blond crossed his arms in front of his chest and scowled at Team Ten's shadow manipulator, who shrugged it off.

"If we're done playing around, let's get moving. I'm eager to meet this 'Great and Powerful' Hokage person."

All eyes turned to the Uchiha, whose voice had been calm and normal even though his body position was anything but. Standing on his left foot, he had raised his right foot straight up even with his head and to the side, the fingers of his right hand holding on to the big toe of his extended foot. The position looked painful, even to the only girl in the group. Sasuke remained perfectly balanced and poised, even as Naruto collapsed to the ground in a fit of laughter, declaring boldly that Sasuke looked like a ballerina.

Scratching the top of his head, Shikamaru sighed. "You guys are such freaks. But I suppose ballerina-boy is right. Let's get this over with."

Sasuke released his foot, allowing the leg to slowly descend to the ground. Naruto managed to control his laughter long enough to make it to his feet, although his face still sported a too-wide grin. The boys gathered in a loose group, proceeding towards the raised wooden walkway. Only Sakura remained still; something was wrong here, she was sure of it. Part of her wanted to follow after the others; she had to move or she would be left behind again. But her mind, her mind kept telling her that the swamp full of lotus flowers was dangerous, that entering it would be a mistake.

The light breeze blew across the swamp and tickled her nose with the sweet scent of lotus. _Oh yeah! The field of poppies. This is a trap! _Her sudden, frantic cries of 'stop' produced the desired results; all three guys ceased their forward progress before entering the swamp. As they turned back toward her, the two dark-haired boys had varying expressions of displeasure on their faces; only Naruto seemed unperturbed by the delay. Sakura quickly caught up with them, breathlessly explaining that entering the swamp of lotus blossoms meant an endless sleep for them all.

"But… that's where the yellow path goes."

"I know, Naruto, but we can't follow it in there."

"So how did the characters in the story get past it?" Shikamaru asked.

Sakura tucked an errant pink strand of hair back behind an ear. "Well, in the story, the scarecrow and the woodsman were made of straw and tin, so they didn't breathe and weren't affected by the scent."

"So maybe Naruto and Sasuke won't fall asleep."

"I don't think we should take the chance."

"Why not?"

"Because it is the scarecrow who figures out a way of getting Dorothy and the lion out of trouble."

Shikamaru eyed Naruto, who had gotten bored with the exchange of words and was busy chasing a dragonfly. "Oh." He flopped to the ground. "Man, what a drag. I knew I should have stayed in the woods." He looked back up at Sakura. "So now what do we do?"

The question drew the steady gaze of not only Sasuke, but Pakkun and even Naruto. With all eyes on her, Sakura bit her lower lip and mentally reviewed their options. In the story, after escaping the poppy field, the characters had made it to the Emerald City only to be told by Oz that they would have to kill the Wicked Witch of the West before he would help them. It would make sense then, for the group of ninjas to take on the Wicked Witch first, and _then _go the City.

Sakura glanced at Shikamaru. A slow, evil smirk crossed her face. An 'evil' witch? The presence of Team Ten's shadow manipulator practically guaranteed who would be playing the role of the witch. For a moment, the pink-haired kunoichi allowed her imagination to run wild. She could picture a thoroughly bespelled Ino, complete with green skin and a wart on the end of her nose. Ha! Once Sasuke saw her like that, there was no way the porker would ever have a chance of winning his heart. This was too perfect!

Sakura quickly outlined her plan to the boys, leaving out her theory that Ino would be playing the role of the witch. Naruto was as agreeable as ever; Shikamaru gave a bored sounding 'whatever', leaving only Sasuke as the silent one. His dark eyes narrowed, his perfectly pouty lips pursed slightly, causing Sakura's insides to tremble. Then a single word was crossed his lips.

"No."

"What? Sasuke, why not?"

He leveled a look at her. "You said that following this path would lead us to a shinobi that would help me get stronger. That's my only reason for coming here with you. I am an avenger; I have no interest in your silly side quest." He turned away from the group, staring out over the swamp. "I have to become stronger. I'm the only one who can kill him. I can't allow anything to get in my way: not flowers… and not you."

Sakura could feel her confidence fleeing before his cold words. Even now, was she really just a nuisance to him? The logical part of her mind tried to tell her that it was only the genjutsu talking, but her heart refused to be consoled. After all, there was a reason Sasuke was chosen to play the role of the heartless character.

The Uchiha resumed walking towards the swamp, slow and steady, while the others stared at his impassive back. Sakura's heart still ached, but fortunately her mind began working again.

"Sasuke, wait! This_ isn't _a silly side quest. A shinobi as powerful as the Hokage won't train you or help the rest of us if we don't prove ourselves worthy. Defeating the Wicked Witch will prove that you're serious about getting stronger."

The moody boy's feet came to a stop. He sighed, and then glanced over his shoulder, one obsidian eye locking in on Sakura's earnest teal ones. He didn't engage the sharingon, but the girl felt as if he was looking through her anyways. He reversed direction to stare across the swamp. Shoulders slumping slightly, he whirled back to the waiting group; back to her.

"Fine. Let's go."

As if a great weight had been taken off her chest, Sakura suddenly felt many times lighter. The shinobi once again gathered chakra in their feet, using the power to increase their speed as they ran around the swamp. Sakura could feel a grin on her face, one that would perhaps rival that of her blond teammate. Even though they were still stuck in the genjutsu, it felt like she had wrested control away from Kurei. No longer were they bound to the conventions of the story and for once, everyone, even Sasuke, was listening to her and following her lead. Her excitement was tainted by a twinge of apprehension. Now that they were headed directly for the witch, who knew what would happen? If the genjutsu responded by changing the story, Sakura would lose her one great advantage: knowledge of how "The Wonderful Wizard of Oz" went.

Well, she would worry about that if and when the time came. For now she could enjoy her moment. An image of a soaking wet, green skinned, warty Ino flashed through her brain. Sakura wasn't usually one to be spiteful, but the opportunity to show her bold rival up in front of Sasuke was not to be missed. Was it her fault that the story dictated that the witch be defeated by a simple bucket of water? Replacing the grin on her face was an almost evil smirk.

_Sorry, Ino, but you are going down!_


	7. The Western Lands, Ninja Style!

**Chapter Seven:**

**The Western Lands, Ninja Style!**

Where the land of the Munchkins had been sunny, bright and cheerfully if not surreally colored, the western land of the Winkies was gloomy and dark. The bleak landscape was populated mainly by large craggy rocks and spooky looking barren trees, which the ninja were using for cover as they made their way through enemy territory. Sakura had been searching her memories for this part of the story, although the plan was to sneak up on the witch in true shinobi fashion before she could react to their presence. Thus far their mission seemed to be going successfully. No swarms of stinging insects or flocks of crows came to attack, which was good because the kunoichi wasn't sure how well Sasuke and Naruto, being the flesh and blood humans that they were, would fare against such foes.

She bit her lower lip as she ducked behind a boulder, awaiting the signal to move forward. Early on she had shamed Shikamaru into taking the lead, with Pakkun to help him. By unspoken accordance, the two role-playing ninja were placed in the middle of their line formation, an area that was theoretically the safest. Sakura brought up the rear; but this time is was her choice to do so. Logic dictated that the two ninja who were themselves should be placed in the two most dangerous spots: the forward and rear positions. She couldn't trust the unambitious shadow manipulator to take the rear, out of fear that he might fall behind and stay behind.

A flash of light caught her eye; it was the signal. Her speed was a far cry from some of the other members of her class, but she could still move quickly for short distances. To the naked eye, she would appear to be nothing more than a dark pink and red blur as she streaked from her hiding place to the next one forward. Sakura caught her breath as she fit her small body into the shadow of the tree. Moving this way was painstakingly slow, but in doing so she hoped to avoid any unnecessary confrontations.

"Well, well, well. Look at the little insects crawling around the castle. I shall have to have a word with the Winkies. Security is clearly lacking."

Heart now firmly beating in her throat, Sakura's body gave an involuntary convulsion. That voice. She knew that voice. Calm and collected, without a hint of malice, and yet it sent a chill of pure terror running straight up her spine.

"You four may as well stop hiding. We have you surrounded, you know."

Same voice, different location. She knew he was fast, but was he really _that_ fast? Like a mouse that knew it had been spotted by a predator, Sakura was afraid to move. Maybe he was bluffing… maybe he didn't really know they were there. She heard a rustling noice above her but remained perfectly still. A single silver-colored feather, impossibly large, came wafting out of the sky to settle on her shoulder.

"Come on, Sakura;" the voice came from directly above her this time. "I don't really like confrontations. Why don't you save us all some trouble and surrender."

Almost of its own accord, her head slowly began to bend back so she could see up the tree. The chill of fear stopped climbing her spine and settled firmly in her stomach. It _was_ him. The older boy gave her a half smile that came dangerously close to being a smirk. As he peered down at her, a hand rose up and gave her a little wave, a seemingly benign gesture that did absolutely nothing to allay her fears. After all, from the very beginning he had seemed so nice, so harmless. He had helped the younger ninjas out during the first and second portions of the chunin exam, all with that self-depreciating smile; setting them all at ease by admitting that he failed the exam so many times. Physically he was taller than any in Sakura's class, but his body was hardly what one would call intimidating. He even wore glasses.

Eyes widening, Sakura's body suddenly came to life. She sprang from beneath the tree, dashing to the rock where Naruto should be. She skidded to a sudden stop and stared. There, on the top of the large grey rock. He was there too. The figure stood, a hand coming up to push his glasses further up his nose. He smiled at her. But the very gesture was a lie. It had all been a lie, all of it, right from the very beginning. He wasn't harmless, or kind; that had been a deception, as carefully crafted as the genjutsu world she now traveled in. Kabuto was a Sound ninja spy, in league with Orochimaru himself. Master Kakashi had told them all after the preliminaries to the third portion of the chunin exam.

A rustle behind her; Sakura whirled to find him there. Silver hair bound back in a ponytail was now joined with a pair of silvery-grey wings that came arching out of his shoulder blades.

"Honestly now, you didn't really think rookies like yourselves could just sneak into the castle, did you?"

There was a blur of motion by her side. The kunoichi stiffened, only to feel immediate relief when the dark blur turned out to be Sasuke.

_He is so cool!_ her inner fan-girl squealed. Another orange blur solidified into Naruto, dragging a reluctant Shikamaru with him.

"Cute," the Kabuto on the boulder stated dryly.

The four younger ninjas stood back to back in a loose circle, a circle suddenly bristling with sharp, pointy weapons as each brought kunai and shuriken to bear. More and more winged Kabutos were alighting in the area around them, each looking exactly like the other. And sadly enough, Sakura thought, each looking almost angelic with their large silvery-grey wings. The 'original' Kabuto, the one that had been above her in the tree, came down with one flap of his silver wings.

He stood with his head cocked ever-so-slightly to one side, catching the light with his glasses to hide his eyes. "Well?" he asked, looking straight at her. Suddenly Sakura felt the crushing burden of leadership. Before, she had always willingly gone along with the others, especially Sasuke. Even if she had misgivings, she would follow along. The one previous time that both of her teammates had been incapacitated had been a terribly frightening and stressful time for her. To make matters worse, during that situation she had ended up needing rescued not once, but twice. Sakura could feel her courage flagging.

_No. They need me. I can't be afraid. The flying monkeys weren't that dangerous in the story… at least not to Dorothy._ She gave a worried glance to the not-so-tin Sasuke to her right.

"Heh. These guys don't look so tough; right, Naruto?" the Uchiha smirked.

"Yeah! If he wants clones, I'll show him how it's done!"

"W…wait a minute, you two." Sakura hoped that for once her teammates would comply and not just rush off. She clasped her hands together and focused her chakra, forcing it out into the surrounding genjutsu world. The winged Kabutos all shimmered, the false Leaf ninja was also a false character; and the girl breathed out a tremendous sigh of relief.

"Sakura," She could feel Naruto fidget beside her. "Can we fight them _now_?"

"You moron, there's nothing there to fight." Shikamaru answered for her.

"You mean they're all clones?"

"No, I mean they are genjutsu like the rest of this world."

"Huh?"

"What a drag; just never mind. Well, 'Dorothy'? What now?"

Sakura gathered her courage. This was just another part of the story. It was time to pull up her big girl pants and deal with it. She addressed the silver-winged Kabuto whom she thought of as the leader, although they all looked identical. "You're playing the role of the winged monkeys," she said, more for her benefit than for his. "So what are your intentions?"

Heh." The older boy gave her a disarming smile and a careless shrug. "I'm to escort you all to the gracious company of the Wicked Witch of the West."

Narrowing her eyes in thought, Sakura frowned at him. "_All_ of us? Unharmed?"

Middle finger extended to push his wayward glasses back into position, while the smile widened fractionally. "All of you, unharmed."

The strawberry-haired girl shifted her weight slightly as she considered her options. In the story, both the tin woodsman and the scarecrow were destroyed by the winged monkeys, only to be repaired later by the Winkies after Dorothy defeated the Wicked Witch. If this was an exam of some sort, then Kabuto's words made sense. While young shinobi could expect a reasonable amount of danger in their tests, it was only logical to assume that their teachers wouldn't deliberately threaten their lives. At least, not without a signed waiver of responsibility.

"How can I trust you?" Sakura asked the Sound ninja spy.

He gave her a patronizing look. "Obviously, you can't. But, since you seem so eager to see my master, it only makes sense to come along with me. After all, your attempt at sneaking in has clearly failed."

"Grr. I'll show you failed!"

Sakura quickly grabbed Naruto's arm before he could make good on his threat. She shot him a 'knock-it-off' look before returning her gaze to the enemy.

The glasses got another push. "I can see why they say that you are the smart one," he said in a tone that had just the barest hint of insincerity. "Shall we?" He extended both a wing and an arm in the direction of the craggy keep that the younger shinobi had been covertly approaching.

Sakura bit her lower lip while stealing a quick glance at Sasuke. No help there. "Just… one more question. Whom, exactly, do you serve?"

If nothing else, Kabuto was a patient soul. "The Wicked Witch of the West," he answered calmly.

Right. Sakura knew that. And witches were girls; everyone knew that. Boys were given the 'wizard' classification. So it should be safe. Right?

"Let's go."

The lead Kabuto gave her a smile that seemed a little more genuine than the last. Several of the others took flight, while a few remained on the ground as escorts.

"What a drag. I hope you know what you're doing." Shikamaru muttered as their little group began to follow Kabuto's lead. Sakura worried at her lower lip. Kabuto's presence, however illusory the ninja himself was, had been an unexpected twist. Still, as she mentally ran through the younger kunoichi she knew, Ino was the only one who could reasonable pull off the role of the witch. Hinata Hyuga was just too shy and timid to perform the required duties. Ten-Ten… well, Sakura didn't know much about the older girl except that she was a weapons oriented fighter. It just didn't seem likely that students of Gai would be involved in a test run by his so-called 'eternal rival', Kakashi. There was the proctor of the second part of the chunin exam; she was definitely nutty enough for the job, but that would give away the jutsu as being a test and Sakura was pretty sure that she wasn't supposed to know.

So it had to be Ino, right? Unless the witch was another illusion character like Kabuto and Konahamaru. As they mounted a small hill and the dingy, grey castle came into view, Sakura could only hope that her theory was correct.


	8. A Serious Miscast

**Chapter Eight:**

**A Serious Miscast**

Whoever was directing this genjutsu had a serious lack of imagination, Sakura Haruno decided. The castle of the Wicked Witch was taken directly from the movie, even though the story had thus far been following the book. Even the line of marching green-faced Winkies was from the movie. Of course, that was where the similarities stopped. Only in this Fairy Tale Jutsu would one find Dorothy and company being _willingly_ escorted to the Witch's lair by winged Kabutos. And no matter whether the jutsu was following the book or the movie, the Wicked Witch would meet her fate via a splash of water; of that Sakura was determined.

She glanced down at her silver shoes, the objects of the Witch's desire. With all of the crafty Kabutos around, she had been unable to inform her comrades of how this section of the story went. _It probably won't matter, _she thought to herself. _After all, the task of defeating the witch is clearly mine._

The lead Kabuto paused while the gate of the castle opened up. The Winkies had stopped their incessant marching, bowing low to the silver-haired minion. He ignored the enslaved people of the western lands, turning slightly to eye his group of prisoners. Pushing his glasses up his nose, he gave them a smile. "Welcome to the home of the Wicked Witch of the West." He shifted his gaze to Sakura. "Please note that all of you have arrived safe and unharmed, as promised."

_Jerk! What do you want, an award or something? _the girl's inner warrior raged. Aloud, she said nothing. The older boy smirked for just an instant, and a chill ran down Sakura's spine. Furling the large silver wings, he gave a mock bow, indicating that the Leaf Village ninjas should enter first. Flanked by Sasuke on one side and Naruto on the other, with Shikamaru bringing up the rear, the solo girl steadily strode into the witch's inner keep.

The interior of the castle was as grey and drab as the outside. They were in a large, sparsely decorated room, with a staircase on the left hand side being the only other exit besides the doors they had just come in. It seemed filthy, as if the corruption of the occupant had infiltrated the very pores of the sandstone blocks. Sakura crinkled her nose as the smell of mildew and dust assaulted it. _I suppose that if I was fatally allergic to water, I'd abstain from cleaning too._

Reminded of her purpose, teal-green eyes began scanning the room, searching for a source of water. Her mission was interrupted by the sharp sound of clapping hands and a _very_ familiar voice.

"You have done well, my faithful pet."

"I live to serve, master," came Kabuto's smooth answer.

"Ino?" Poor Shikamaru's voice squeaked out the name as if he had just been kneed in the groin. Beside her, Sakura could feel Naruto flinch as her platinum-haired rival began to descend a flight of stairs. The energetic blond could face down giant snakes and stand up to deadly enemy jounin, but by his own admission, Ino scared him silly.

Sakura, however, breathed out a sigh of relief. It was definitely Ino. Unlike the rest of them, her familiar wardrobe had been replaced by flowing black robes. The only thing missing was the pointy hat. Her hair was the same ultra light blond that she had been born with; the short back kept pinned up in a bun while the few remaining longer front pieces framed her face. Sakura had to admit that she was often jealous of her friend. Ino was smart, confident; she had her own jutsu and to top it all off, she had been born good-looking too. Normally the pink-haired kunoichi felt just plain lacking in comparison. Today, however, she felt pity for her one-time best friend. Ino's skin was the color of split pea soup; her normally clear complexion was marred by warts.

Sakura dragged her eyes away from the spectacle, resuming the search for the bucket of water. _Darn it, where could it be? _If it came down to a fight, she was pretty sure they could take down Ino. Kabuto's skills as a warrior were more of a mystery. Master Kakashi had warned then all to report his presence if he was seen within the village but to stay away from the betrayer himself. Luckily, only one of the winged minions had entered the castle; the others were probably perched on the ramparts or something. So it was four verses two. The odds were most certainly in the Konoha ninjas' favor.

Still, Sakura felt uneasy. Test weren't supposed to be easy; the water was conspicuously absent and Ino… Ino seemed somehow different than normal. Granted, with her pea soup skin tone, warts and black clothes, Ino _looked _a lot different, but there was something else too… Her mannerisms seemed… off. In the book, the witch had only wanted the lion for labor and Dorothy's enchanted shoes. Ino, however, seemed to only have eyes for Sasuke. Sakura snorted to herself. Maybe her rival wasn't acting as strange as she had originally thought.

"I'm so glad you came to join us… Sasuke Uchiha," the witch spoke, her pale blue eyes almost glowing with an inner light.

Sakura could feel Shikamaru stiffen behind her. "That's not Ino," he whispered.

The smirk on the witch's face widened. "My. Aren't you a clever one." There was a loud slam as the large wooden doors were secured behind them, causing the whole group to jump. "Ah well, I don't suppose it matters anymore." One green hand reached up to the familiar face, nails digging into one side of it. There was an indescribable tearing sound; bits of shredded green-colored flesh floated through the air and fell to the floor. Beneath it was skin of an unnatural pallid color. As if tearing the flesh had rended the illusion, the hair and eyes changed too. Platinum blond locks became jet black, pale blue eyes gave way to green-gold, pupils slitted vertically.

"No… it can't be…" Sakura tried to take a step back, only to bump into Shikamaru.

The tall, ominous figure gave her a leer. "I told you he'd come to me out of his own free will… Isn't that right, Sasuke Uchiha?"

"No," Sasuke's steady voice rang out. He had his arms crossed in front of his chest, assuming an unaffected manner. "I only came because Sakura said that the so-called Great and Powerful Hokage wouldn't train me unless I defeated the Wicked Witch. If you are that witch, prepare for defeat!" He assumed a combat stance.

"S… Sasuke…" Sakura stammered. Orochimaru was way, way, _way_ out of their league. He was a sannin, one of the three ninjas of legend. Her heart beat a rapid crescendo in her chest. If this jutsu was his doing, then they were dead, no doubt in her mind.

There was a familiar pulse of chakra; Sakura blinked as the scenery grew wavy around them. Partially turning her head, she could see Shikamaru's hands were clasped together with his first two fingers on each pointed upwards. "Look," he gasped, "he's not real." Whipping her head back around, Sakura could see that the sannin was shimmering along with the rest of the background. The sense of relief she felt almost knocked her to her knees. So he was a fake, just like his winged minion. Thank goodness!

Shikamaru ceased his outpouring of chakra and the imagery surrounding them instantly smoothed out. The illusive Orochimaru gave them all a tolerant smile before focusing all of his attention back on Sasuke, picking up the conversation as if nothing had happened at all. "If you wish to be stronger, I can train you." An abnormally long tongue emerged to lick the snake ninja's lips. Sakura shuddered. Illusion or not, the guy was giving her the creeps.

"Can you open the inner gates?"

She gave her sincere raven-haired companion a look of complete disbelief.

The phantasm laughed, an almost manic sound. There was no warmth in his reptile eyes as he gazed at his prize. "Of course. That, and so much more. I can train you, Sasuke Uchiha."

"Sasuke! You can't! This is our _enemy._ He's evil!"

He turned his cold, obsidian eyes towards her, and Sakura was reminded once again of the role he was playing. "I only have one enemy," he stated simply. "And I will do whatever it takes to defeat him." He took a step towards the waiting sannin, his forward progress stopped by Sakura grabbing his arm. He jerked it out of her reach. For a moment their eyes met; the look he gave her was one of utter distain. Then he wordlessly began moving again, away from her. For a split second, Sakura felt the crushing weight of defeat. But only for a moment. Her inner psyche sprang to life. She was _not_ going to lose Sasuke. Not to Ino, not to an illusion, and certainly not to a stupid jutsu that had gotten way out of line.

"Shikamaru! Stop him!" she ordered, and Team Ten's shadow manipulator responded by instantly attaching his shadow to Sasuke, freezing him in his tracks. Sakura snapped a finger forward, addressing with boldness an enemy she would ordinarily hide from. "Now look here. You're playing the role of the witch. You are supposed to be after my _shoes_, not the tin woodsman!"

Unperturbed, the sannin allowed his reptile eyes to drift slowly down her body to eye the open-toed silver shoes on her feet. Then, just as deliberately, his eyes came back up to meet hers. "Sorry," he said in a voice that indicated exactly the opposite, "but they're not really my style." The elite ninja's gaze drifted back over to Sasuke. The tongue reemerged, once again licking the lips, as if the Uchiha was a tasty dessert to be devoured.

Sakura shuddered. This was just so wrong. "I… I will stop you."

"You know, you really shouldn't announce your intentions like that," Kabuto's voice whispered in her ear. "It's bad ninjutsu."

The kunoichi froze. When? How had Kabuto slipped between her and Shikamaru? Now she had her enemy's favorite minion at her back, while the black robed man himself continued his slow descent down the staircase. It was over.

"Sakura! It's a major pain, but I've got him and Sasuke both. If you're going to do something, now's the time."

She had no time to spare Shikamaru a grateful look, instead springing away from the shadow frozen Kabuto. "Naruto! Can you slow down the witch?"

"Can I? Oh, boy, anything for you Sakura! Shadow-clone Jutsu!"

The room filled with Naruto's signature jutsu - multiple solid-form shadow clones. Sakura couldn't stop a smile. The blond had been visibly frightened of Ino, but Orochimaru he would attack without a qualm. Too stupid to know when to be scared; Sakura had never been happier to see this side of her teammate's personality. But the moment was fleeting; she had her own job to do. There was no water in the room, and the only two exits were the locked doors behind her and the staircase occupied by the sannin. As the black-robed snake ninja swatted down Naruto's clones like flies, Sakura dismissed both options. Besides, however good her intentions, she couldn't run out while her companions fought for their lives. There had to be another way.

"Sakura! I can't hold them much longer!" Shikamaru warned. Behind Kabuto's glasses, his eyes had taken on a reddish hue.

Struck by a sudden bolt of inspiration, Sakura gathered her chakra. It wasn't enough to break the illusion world, but… _What were those signs again? Oh yeah: rabbit, rat, dog… _The air before her shimmered as trickles of sweat ran down her perfectly normal sized brow.

Several things happened at once. Sakura grabbed the newly formed illusion and began dashing towards the staircase as Kabuto broke free of Shikamaru's shadow. The silver-winged spy took his captor down before the boy could blink, and then whirled to face her. Skidding to a stop with a high-pitched shriek, the kunoichi was saved when a dozen newly formed Naruto-clones dog-piled on top of her would be assailant. She dodged to the side of the squirming pile of testosterone, her objective almost in reach. Then, _he _appeared in her way.

"Sakura, stop interfering. I know what I'm doing. I can't let you get in the way of my mission."

For once, her love of the boy could not overcome her exasperation. Unfortunately, there was no way for her to get past Sasuke, who really was the top-ranked ninja in their class. She was so close to her goal, and yet, she couldn't see a way to reach it.

"Ninja art: Hidden Finger Jutsu; Thousand Years of Death!"

Sasuke's eyes widened at the bold pronouncement; his hands barely had time to fly into signs…

The Uchiha flew into the air, a horrified look on his face. Grinning from ear to ear, Naruto gave Sakura a quick wink a second before Sasuke's body poofed into a flying piece of wood.

"Aw, man! A substitution?"

Sakura vaulted over the blond, bringing her own conjured weapon to bear. Out of the corner of her eyes, she could see more poofs of dispelled chakra as Kabuto got the upper hand on the group of Naruto clones he was fighting. It was now or never! She pulled back and threw the contents of the bucket on the sannin and the few remaining Naruto clones, soaking Orochimaru from head to foot. Jet black hair was now slicked down, sticking to the sides of his too-pale face. Black robes clung to the lithe body; the surrounding battle froze as one of the great ninjas of legend wiped water off of his face with a hand. Sakura, who had been so convinced that this would work, was now frozen in terror. The vertically slitted eyes were focused directly on her; the expression on his face was one of vague amusement.

"Lord Orochimaru, what was in that bucket?" Although facing the sannin, Sakura could see that Kabuto had defeated all of Naruto's clones. He had the blond pinned to the ground and had somehow secured Shikamaru as well.

"It was water, Kabuto… _ice_ water."

"Ice water?" The minion pushed his glasses back up his nose and smiled. "Ah, I get it. You thought that attack would be more effective because snakes are cold-blooded."

Sakura couldn't respond. The water had taken so much chakra to conjure and it hadn't worked. _Why _hadn't it worked? The witch should be a puddle of goo by now.

"So now what?" the winged ninja asked.

"Well, water is water. I suppose I've had enough fun. Fly them to the Emerald City, Kabuto, once they are ready." With that, the illusory Orochimaru made hand signs that Sakura recognized as being earth-style ninjutsu, and then disappeared into the ground.

Mouth agape from shock, she turned to eye Kabuto, who shrugged as he removed his foot from where it was pressing Naruto's face into the ground. "Melting is a bit undignified for him. Let's just say that you've won… but only because circumstances are what they are; understand?"

Numbly, she nodded. Right. As if she would ever attempt to throw a bucket of ice water on Orochimaru in real life.

"_You_ understand, Sakura? Good, because I'm completely confused."

"Man, what a pain that was. Remind me never to exert myself again."

"Naruto, you dunce! How dare you use Kakashi's stupid jutsu against me!"

The oldest shinobi shrugged, wings rising and falling with the gesture, and gave Sakura an almost pitying look. She sighed, relief dulling the anger she normally would have felt towards the squabbling boys. A cold nose pressed against her leg, making her jump. "Pakkun? Where the heck have you been hiding?" The small dog just wagged his tale.


	9. The One Behind the Curtain

**Chapter Nine**

**The One Behind the Curtain**

Even without the use of the sharingon, Sasuke Uchiha was a skilled and dangerous fighter, Sakura concluded, while gingerly touching a very sore arm. It would probably bruise. She sighed, her mind momentarily distracted by calculating the odds of an injury caused in a fairy tale world appearing on her body in the real world. It certainly felt real enough. The sound of giggling in the background brought her back to the present. It could only be trouble, and sure enough Naruto was gloating over a hog-tied and gagged Sasuke.

"Naruto, cut that out!" Sakura growled, causing the orange-clad boy to flinch and walk away. "Sorry, Sasuke," she said again for the umpteenth time. The glare leveled at her was unforgiving, and a part of Sakura's heart cringed and grew still. "It's for your own good," she continued lamely. "You'll feel better once this jutsu is broken." He turned away from her, as much as the ropes would allow, and closed his eyes, as if he couldn't stand the sight of her.

"Are you guys about ready?" one of Orochimaru's winged minions inquired. The question wasn't unexpected, and the tone was benign, but Sakura still felt her hackles rise up.

"We'll let you know," she snapped tersely. The older ninja just gave a vague smile and shrugged. The pink-haired girl turned her back to him testily. In the end, it had been Kabuto who had finally subdued Sasuke. The 'tin man' had been very angry at the interference in his goal to become stronger; he had stated bluntly that he had no intention of traveling with any of them anymore and that he was returning to the forest. When Sakura's desperate pleas had fallen on deaf ears and it had become obvious that he intended to leave them, she had become desperate. In her mind, they _all_ had to get to the Emerald City; it was a lesson about teamwork and comrades that Master Kakashi had drilled into them on the very first day he had been assigned as their teacher. And so, failing to convince him with her words, Sakura resorted to physical force to 'persuade' the Uchiha's cooperation.

Unfortunately, she and Shikamaru had been pretty much tapped out, chakra-wise. He couldn't perform his shadow possession jutsu for more than a second or two, and she, well, she was just no match for the genius of the rookie class. Naruto, bottomless pit of energy that he was, created yet more solid form doppelgangers. But, being the knuckle-head that he was, his opponent quickly defeated all of them.

That was when Kabuto finally interfered. True to form, he hadn't given any indication at all that he was interested in moving the proceedings forward. The whole time he had just leaned against a wall and watched as the younger ninjas tried to subdue Sasuke. Then, without any warning at all, the Uchiha had been dragged underground just as he had defeated the last Naruto-clone. A second later and his tied and gagged body reemerged, followed by the silver-haired Sound spy. The Kabuto leaning against the wall had poofed away; it had been a clone all along.

Although a part of her had been glad that Sasuke's desertion had been stopped, the majority of her was angry at the circumstances. She didn't want the help of an agent of Sound; not now, and not ever. And although she knew it was a part of the story, the idea of allowing the winged right hand man of Orochimaru to fly them all to the Emerald City aggravated her. Trusting and relying on an enemy wasn't a sound strategy at all; something Shikamaru had already reminded her of.

She eyed the prone body of Sasuke. It wouldn't take him long to free himself of the bonds; they simply couldn't afford to try and walk to their destination.

"Kabuto… we're ready."

-----------------------------------------------

Sakura swallowed hard as the scenery blurred beneath her. She resisted the urge to grab onto the neck of the glasses wearing shinobi whose large silver-grey wings were carrying them both through the air. _Does he have to fly so high? Ugh, this is bad,_ she thought as her stomach did flip-flops.

"Higher! Faster!" Naruto urged his bearer. The tow-headed chunin was grinning from ear to ear, completely unafraid of the height or speed at which they were traveling. Shikamaru had a dazed look on his face as he got a closer than normal look at the clouds. Sasuke was the only one whose face she couldn't see. The Kabuto carrying her had assured her that all of them would reach the Emerald City unharmed. Not having much of a choice, Sakura and the others agreed to be carried bridal style through the air.

_Sasuke is never going to forgive me for this. _The thought of her beloved teammate giving her the cold shoulder for the rest of her life was bad enough; but then Sakura had discovered belatedly that she was afraid of flying. The flock of Kabutos was flying fast and high and Sakura's knuckles were turning white as she clenched her hands into fists in order to keep from clinging to her bearer. A kunoichi had to have _some_ dignity, after all.

The ground blurred by and Sakura forced herself to think about the dynamics of the jutsu they were trapped in to distract herself from the fact that it was a long way down. There was no way her physical body was moving through the dense forest surrounding Konoha, she determined. Her actual body was probably standing dazed in the clearing. But then, how had she run into Naruto and the others? Genjutsu, the art of illusion, was a powerful and mysterious thing. After pondering without an answer presenting itself, Sakura filed away the questions she had for later. Her sensei, after telling her that she had a talent for genjutsu, had been decidedly lax about teaching her how to use it. The solo girl of Cell Seven decided it was beyond time for that to change.

"There it is."

Sakura blinked at the sound of Kabuto's voice. Sure enough, the Emerald City in all its green glory loomed ahead. It was another set taken straight from the movie; in the book, the inhabitants had all worn green-tinted glasses to make the city seem special. From the sky, Sakura could see the semi-familiar green spires jutting up into the air, looking almost crystalline in the light. The flock of winged Kabutos wasted no time in delivering their passengers to the massive front gate. Executing bows that were perfectly polite, and yet somehow gave the sense of being mocking in nature, the Sound ninjas took to the air and quickly left the area. It was tempting to free Sasuke at this point, but Sakura resisted the urge. Now that they were here, the last thing she wanted to do was chase after a pissed off and retreating Uchiha.

After declaring herself the gatekeeper as being 'the slayer of the Wicked Witch of the West,' the group was given easy access to the green-hued city. And despite being told that "no one saw the Great and Powerful Hokage", Sakura made that happen too. Not by crying, as did Dorothy in the movie, but by letting her inner warrior rage. She might not have been the strongest shinobi by a long shot, but Sakura had no problem 'persuading' the non-ninja city official to comply with their desire to see the Hokage.

And so it was that Team Seven, along with Pakkun and Shikamaru, found themselves in the revered one's chamber. It was at that point that Sasuke was finally released, but only after Sakura had solicited a strict promise from him, on the honor of his clan, that he would stay and meet the Hokage. A large dais was the focal point of the elongated room. Green smoke began undulating up from the ground at their entrance; a large, fierce looking face was projected on it.

"Who dares disturb the Great and Powerful Hokage?" a voice boomed, the low tone reverberating through the young ninja's bodies.

"Cool!" Naruto declared. "I've got to learn _that_ jutsu!"

"Dunce. It's just poorly done genjutsu. No big deal."

"What a drag. Does everyone have to be so loud?"

"Silence!" roared the green cast face, using such volume and vehemence that Naruto ended up on his butt. "Why have you come?"

"Sakura made us come," the blond boy blurted. "Uh… Sakura?"

The kunoichi was no longer in the group; she was investigating the curtains to the side of the room.

"Hey! Stop that!" demanded the smoke face. Sakura smirked. They should have picked a different story. Anyone who had ever read the book or seen the movie would know this little secret. The room shook as the large face grew even larger. "Stop it I say. I am the Great and Powerful Hokage!"

"Oh yeah? Well take this!" With that, Sakura pulled back the heavy green velvet curtain, to revel… nothing but a green stone block wall. "What?" More desperate pulls followed, but there was no man behind the curtain. She whirled to face her friends.

"Sakura, I know the decorating is ugly, but isn't this the guy we came to see?" Sasuke gestured towards the disembodied head.

"But its genjutsu."

"Obviously."

She shook her head so hard that pink strands of hair whipped across her cheeks. "No, the whole thing is…"

"What is it that you want?" the Hokage intoned. "Speak, and then be gone."

"Oh, me first! I want to be the greatest scare ninja ever!"

Sakura pinched the bridge of her nose. What had gone wrong? Was it because she had changed the story by killing the witch first? _Think, Sakura, think! This is genjutsu; stop thinking of it in terms of a story. _She closed her eyes, shutting out the green-hued room and Naruto's enthusiastic voice. _Genjutsu is an illusion. In order for it to work properly, to react to what we were doing, the person directing it almost has to be close by… but where?_ She gathered the small remains of her chakra, hoping against hope that it would be enough. The weak pulse she managed to send out was laughable, but it did the trick. All of her teammates remained solid, except for…

"Pakkun! You're not the real Pakkun, are you? That's why you aren't talking!"

The boys' attention went from the giant floating head to the small pug-mix sitting at their feet. The dog wagged his tail; there was a poof of dispelled chakra and Master Kakashi was crouched there.

"K… Kakashi-sensei? What are you doing here?"

Naruto gasped. Even Sasuke looked surprised. Only Shikamaru looked bored. The masked jounin gave Sakura a smile that crinkled up his one visible eye. Then he turned to the green 'Hokage' head. "Well? I told you she had a talent for genjutsu."

"True." The voice was no longer loud and booming. It was no longer male. Before Sakura could place where she might have heard it before, it spoke again. "Fairy Tale Jutsu – Release!" The green room around them swirled and then disappeared. Sakura blinked as her bleary eyes adjusted to reality. She was lying prone in a clearing, her dazed teammates around her. Slowly she sat up.

"Welcome back," Pakkun, the real one, greeted. Looming above her was both her teacher, Kakashi, and the leader of Cell Eight, teacher of Hinata, Kiba and Shino.

Naruto was the first to his feet. "Hey… what's going on?" He snapped a finger at Kakashi. "You said there would be free ramen. You _lied,_ Kakashi-sensei!"

"Man, what a drag. Asuma owes me… big time." Shikamaru dusted himself off and wandered away, giving a backwards wave of his hand to Sakura's hastily spoken 'thank you'.

Sasuke remained sitting on the ground, his face inscrutable. Sakura slowly got to her feet, eying the other jounin. She had only seen the woman before on a few occasions, like during the pre-lims to the chunin exams. The most striking thing about her besides her thick, wavy hair was her eyes: concentric circles of red. The genin shook her head. Kurei – Kurenai. It was so obvious now. She should have picked up on it before.

"Hey, hey, I know you! You're Hinata's sensei, aren't you?"

Kakashi gave his fellow jounin elite an apologetic look. "Naruto, this is Master Kurenai. She leads Cell Eight."

"So just what is going on here?" Sasuke queried from the ground.

"It was a little test, Sasuke, for Sakura." The silver-haired, masked jounin turned his attention to his colleague. "Well?"

"She definitely has a talent. With some hard work and training, it might develop into something."

"Wait a minute," Sakura interrupted. "I wasn't able to break your jutsu at all. I couldn't tell that Master Kakashi was masquerading as Pakkun… With all due respect, how could I have passed?"

Kurenai gave her a gentle smile. "With the exception of Shikamaru, you were the only one who saw my genjutsu for what it really was. Not only that, but you were able to manipulate it enough to conjure your own illusion: the bucket of ice water. I see some potential in you. If you are willing to work hard to see it develop, I'd be willing to train you."

Sakura glanced uncertainly at her own sensei.

"It's alright, Sakura. Kurenai is a genjutsu expert. You'll get far better training from her than you would from me. Don't get the wrong idea, though. You are still a member of Team Seven. That means this training will be on your own time and in addition to the conditioning and missions that you do with us."

"And I only accept one hundred percent from my students," Kurenai said firmly. "If you aren't going to give it your all, don't waste my time."

They stood there, the jounin elite, a level of rank and skill that Sakura knew she would probably never rise to. But still, with this extra training, maybe she could at least become a chunin; catch up to the boys, be an equal. That was all she really wanted.

"Wait a minute. If this whole thing was just about Sakura, how come Naruto and I were involved?"

"Because you are a _team_, Sasuke. What affects one of you, affects you all. Sakura never lost sight of that, not even in the middle of the test. If she had, you would still be doing yoga in an illusory clearing somewhere." A slow blush colored Sasuke's cheeks. "A ninja's confidence in their abilities is very important. Sakura, you did very well."

"Well, that's that then." The poofy-haired jounin's hands suddenly held a familiar orange-covered book. "Alright, Naruto, let's go get that ramen. You too, Sasuke…"

"Free ramen!? You mean it? Woo-hoo!" Naruto did a leap for joy while Sasuke rose from the ground and slowly trailed after the other two, pausing to give Sakura a contemplative look before leaving her and Kurenai behind.

"We'll start your training tomorrow morning," the older woman said, "at the crack of dawn."

"Um, sure." Sakura hesitated, staring for a moment after her departing comrades. "Um, Kurenai-sensei? Do you think I could learn how to do the 'Fairy Tale Jutsu' too?"

The jounin raised a brow at her. "Well, it takes a lot of chakra to cast, and a lot of concentration to control. Other jutsus are far more effective in actual combat; but I suppose, with hard work and practice, you could master this one as well."

Sakura nodded, her eyes and focus solely on the retreating backs of her teammates. Kurenai shook her head and shimmered away, leaving the young teen alone with her thoughts. Not noticing the jounin's departure, Sakura smiled and blushed a little at the same time. Becoming a stronger ninja was all fine and well, but she had other goals in life too. The Fairy Tale jutsu could prove useful, very useful. After all, 'the Wonderful Wizard of Oz' was a children's book and she had long since moved on to other novels. And with their vulnerability to this jutsu and their midnight and sunshine colored hair, Sakura couldn't imagine a better pair to play Rhett and Ashley.

_All right! Mission goal: first kiss!, _her inner personality declared. With a smile, Sakura broke into a trot. She had to catch up to her team.

**Fin**

**A/N: **My humble thanks for those of you who took the time to read this rather different story. So long for now!


End file.
